Samantha+Hurst+-+LMF

//Learning Motivation and Fun//


As I sat down to write this paper, I considered how the information in this database could help to inform me in the development of my team’s future ** board game **. So I structured my sample to look at: 1) females [n=23] 10-19 years old; 2) males [n=22] 10-19 years old; 3) ** types ** of experiences they reported as “fun and engaging”; 4) the importance of ** social recognition ** to the experience; and 5) the degree of ** challenge ** associated with the success of the experience. Here is what the data revealed: //** __Types of experiences__ ** . Among the female cohort approximately 74% [n=17/23] describe a situation related to acquiring ** education ** and the ** knowledge ** . These experiences revealed memories of classroom instruction, field trips, research, and mentorship activities. Content themes of these experiences included science, history, language application, and cultural simulations. The remaining 26% [n=5/23] of female stories I categorized as ** artistic. ** These stories recounted experiences related to learning archery, music performance, writing scripts and performance, learning dance, sewing, embroidery, and drawing. The ** male cohort ** also reported a majority (54% [n=12/22]) of stories describing experiences related to ** academics ** and ** knowledge. ** Their experiences included topics such as learning geometry, language courses, philosophy, science, history, and literature. Another 23% [n=5/22] of males spoke about learning a ** skill ** such as biking, typing, survival/nature, t-shirt printing, or mastering a stick shift in driving and the remaining 23% [n=5/22] reported activities that I categorized as similar to the ** artistic ** theme in females. These included situations like improving game playing performance, learning an instrument, and completing an art project. // As such, the data revealed few significant differences in the types experiences reported between females and males during their teen years. //** Importance of social recognition **. I was surprised to find that both females and males reported similar averages among the ranges of social recognition [L, M, and H] associated with memorable learning activities. Female averages were distributed almost evenly at 30% [L], 35% [M], and 35% [H]. Male averages were 24% [L], 48% [M], and 28% [H]. It is perhaps too speculative to determine a conclusion, but clearly those who ranked “high” spoke about experiences in which some level of performance was a part of the experience. // It is probably safe to suggest that social recognition is important to both female and male teens and can influence a memorable learning experience, particularly if group size of the activity is large.

//** Degree of challenge **. Again, females and males described similar averages of perceived challenge [L, M, and H] associated with their learning experiences. Approximately 43% [n=10/23] of females and 50% [n=11/22] of males felt their experience was ** highly challenging **. While 48% [n=11/23] of females and 27% [n=6/22] of males were challenged at a medium level, and only 5% [n=1/22 - 1 missing] of females and 15% [n=3/20 - 2 missing] of males reported a low challenge associated with learning. //

This data would suggest that challenging situations are an important criteria for valued learning experiences for both females and males in this age range. No other data factors appear to correlate significantly with experiences ranked as low.